Infectious Disease Emergency Leave is job-protected leave for workers who are in self-isolation or quarantine, or those who need to take time off work to care for their children or other relatives. It also eliminates the requirement for workers to provide sick notes. Workers who need to make use of this leave should tell their employers that they will be taking the emergency leave. They do not have to take vacation, sick days, or other allotted paid time off.
Effective April 29, 2020, employers are now required to provide eligible employees with up to three of these days of paid infectious disease leave. Employees are entitled to the lesser of $200 or their regular wages for the day, excluding any overtime pay or shift premium.
These paid sick days are only available to employees who are covered by the Employment Standards Act, and do not apply to gig workers, independent contractors or federally regulated employees. Employees who are already entitled to three days or more of paid sick time through their employer are not entitled to additional days.
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The federal government also offers the Canadian Recovery Sickness Benefit, which provides $500 per week to individuals who lose at least 50% of their pay for a work week, and who do not receive other sick pay for the same period. Get more details here.
